阅读理解。
Have you winterized your horse yet? Even though global warming may have made our climate more mild,
many animals are still hibernating (冬眠). It's too bad that humans can't hibernate. In fact, as a species, we
almost did.
Apparently, at times in the past, peasants in France liked a semi-state of human hibernation. So writes
Graham Robb, a British scholar who has studied the sleeping habits of the French peasants. As soon as the
weather turned cold, people all over France shut themselves away and practiced the forgotten art of doing
nothing at all for months on end.
In line with this, Jeff Warren, a producer at CBC Radio's The Current, tells us that the way we sleep has
changed fundamentally since the invention of artificial (人造的) lighting and the electric bulb.
When historians began studying texts of the Middle Ages, they noticed something referred to as "first
sleep", which was not clarified, though. Now scientists are telling us our ancestors most likely slept in
separate periods. The business of eight hours' uninterrupted sleep is a modem invention.
In the past, without the artificial light of the city to bathe in, humans went to sleep when it became dark
and then woke themselves around midnight. The late night period was known as "The Watch". It was when
people actually kept watch against wild animals, although many of them simply moved around or visited
family and neighhours.
According to some sleep researchers, a short period of insomnia (失眠) at midnight is not a disorder. It
is normal. Humans can experience another state of consciousness around their sleeping, which occurs in the
brief period before we fall asleep or wake ourselves in the morning. This period can be an extraordinarily
creative time for some people. The impressive inventor, Thomas Edison, used this state to hit upon many of
his new ideas.
Playing with your sleep rhythms can be adventurous, as anxiety may set in. Medical science doesn't help
much in this case. It offers us medicines for a full night's continuous sleep, which sounds natural; however,
according to Warren's theory, it is really the opposite of what we need.
1. The example of the French peasants shows the fact that _____. [ ]
A. people might become lazy as a result of too much sleep.
B. there were signs of hibernation in human sleeping habits.
C. people tended to sleep more peacefully in cold weather.
D. winter was a season for people to sleep for months on end.
2. The late night was called "The Watch" because it was a time for people _____. [ ]
A. to set traps to catch animals.
B. to wake up their family and neighbours.
C. to remind others of the time.
D. to guard against possible dangers.
3. What does the author advise people to do? [ ]
A. Sleep in the way animals do.
B. Consult a doctor if they can't sleep.
C. Follow their natural sleep rhythm.
D. Keep to the eight-hour sleep pattern.
4. What is the author's purpose in writing the passage?[ ]
A. To give a prescription for insomnia.
B. To urge people to sleep less.
C. To analyze the sleep pattern of modem people.
D. To throw new light on human sleep.
